Phal with yellow leaves and new growth
 

Bellow are some pictures of my two Phalaenopsis orchids. The smaller one I've had for about five months and the bigger one was purchased just yesterday. They both have wilted yellow/orange leaves on the bottom. Is this just normal as they shed old leaves and grow new ones or it it maybe something else (watering, fertilizer)? And should I wait until they are completely dry to pull them off or should I cut them off?

Also, my little Phal has an odd new growth. It looks like a stem but it's coming up from under where the roots are, it's not attached to the base of the plant like I'm used to seeing. Is it a wayward root?

There are pictures below of all of this.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...hryn/orcid.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...ryn/yellow.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...ryn/yeloow.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/Kaythryn/zig.jpg

Thanks for any advice/observations!

As Phals go through a new growth cycle putting out new leaves and roots it's perfectly normal for them to shed a bottom leaf or two. That's an aerial root in the last picture. Some Phals have a habit of sending aerials out no matter how much room there is in their pot. The both look like they are planted in sphagnum moss. That stuff needs to be changed about every 6-9 months otherwise it rots. They both look happy so just keep doing what you're doing.

Hi,
I think your phals are really healthy. It is normal for the bottom leaves to yellow and fall off, especially since there is a new leaf appearing. Phals tend to (in my experience so far) keep the same amount of leaves their whole life. So if it grows one or two, you can expect to lose a bottom leaf soon. You can either give a gentle tug to see if it comes off, or wait and let the plant shed it on its own. As for the roots coming out of nowhere, it's a root in the pot that decided to come up for some fresh air! Nothing wrong with that, in fact, it seems to be typical phal behavior.:)

Ditto! leaf yellowing - normal, aerial root - normal. new growth - always a good thing, but that moss does look a bit too wet for my taste...

Keep us posted :)

Thanks for this post...I had the exact same question about my phals! :)